It is said that the mental component is the most challenging aspect of a thru-hike.  I am one of those making this claim, in fact, I wrote two books on this very subject.  Although the physical element of a cross country trek can't be understated in terms of difficulty, after a few weeks, a hiker's body largely adjusts to the rigors of walking all day, every day.  As the physical element gets easier, for many, the psychological struggle only grows in magnitude.  And that's the subject for today's show. Our hikers share what mental struggles they've encountered (if any), how it's differed relative to their expectations, what tools they use to stay sane, and much more. FIND US ON ITUNES | FIND US ON GOOGLE PLAY | FIND US ON STITCHER Check out Appalachian Trials and Pacific Crest Trials. In today's episode we hear from: Cal "Starburst" Dobbs Jeff "Link" Podmayer Lara Waltrous Monica "Moss" Aguilar Henri "Rooster" de la Vega [divider] Have any praise, questions, praise, comments, praise, or praise for Trail Correspondents? Reach out to [email protected]. Subscribe to this podcast on iTunes (and please leave us a review)! Download this episode here. Find us on Stitcher and Google Play. INSTAGRAM: Follow Trail Correspondents, The Trek, and Badger. YOUTUBE: Subscribe to The Trek. FACEBOOK: Follow Trail Correspondents and The Trek. sign up for our newsletter > Editing and music courtesy of David Zitney. Follow him on Instagram @dzitneyaudio. Give us feedback on Trail Correspondents here.